Interesting facts about firearms.
Let's combine a story with a smile? Some interesting facts about weapons: funny, amusing, sad, and sometimes ridiculous.
1. Mongol warriors wore armor called “khuyag”. During the wars between Rus' and the Golden Horde, this word penetrated into the Russian language, but in an ennobled form - eastern armor of the brigantine type began to be called “kuyak”.
2. In 1960, the United States began production of intercontinental nuclear ballistic missiles ground-based Minuteman. They had a mechanism to protect against accidental launch - the operator had to enter a code using a digital display. However, the command ordered the installation of the same code 00000000 (eight zeros in a row) on all such missiles - and their number over time reached 1000. This approach was supposed to ensure a quick response when starting nuclear war. Only in 1977 did the command take into account the threat of nuclear terrorism and decided to change the light code, known to all officers, to an individual one for each missile.
3. In 1984, the USSR developed laser gun non-lethal action. It was intended for self-defense of astronauts. Lethal effect this pistol was to disable sensitive elements optical systems, including the human eye. And an important advantage compared to a conventional pistol in zero gravity conditions was the lack of recoil. Now the laser pistol is a monument of science and technology and is exhibited in the Museum of the History of the Strategic Missile Forces Military Academy.
4. Initially in ancient times the term "catapult" was used to describe a weapon that threw arrows at flat trajectory, and the term “ballista” is a weapon that throws stones or cannonballs at mounted trajectory. By the end of the Roman Empire, the meanings had changed: now arrow throwers began to be called ballistas, and any kind of catapults in general throwing machines with torsion operating principle. This confusion with the names and understanding of books about ancient weapons reigns to this day.
5. In 1942, the Soviet submarine Shch-421 was blown up by a German anti-submarine mine, losing speed and the ability to dive. To prevent the ship from being carried ashore by the enemy, it was decided to sew a sail and raise it on the periscope. However, it was no longer possible to sail to the base, and it was not even possible to tow the submarine with the help of other ships. After the appearance of the German torpedo boats the crew was evacuated and the submarine was sunk.
6. In 1857 the British brought long range rifles"Enfield" for arming the Indian army. However, they did not take into account possible problems with animal fat, which was used to lubricate the rifle and impregnate cardboard cartridges. After all, for Hindus a cow is a sacred animal, and for Muslims it is a sin to touch a pig. There were both in the army, and each group decided that the British did not take its religion into account. Hindus and Muslims united and organized an uprising, which resulted in many deaths of both military and civilians originally from England.
7. In the technical specifications for the T-28 tank, which was created in the 1930s, there is a clause according to which the tank must overcome lunar landscapes. There is no mysticism or fantasy here: the fact is that at that time the lunar landscape was the name given to the area that suffered from bombing and artillery strikes.
8. According to statistics, the average American police officer uses service weapon once every 27 years. And in television series, the average police officer shoots to kill at least 10 times.
9. The inventor of dynamite, Alfred Nobel, called himself a pacifist and believed that if opponents had weapons that could instantly destroy each other, they would understand that they would gain nothing from the war and stop the conflict. In 1888, a message about Nobel's death and an obituary were mistakenly published, in which he was called a "millionaire on blood" and a "dealer in explosive death." Not wanting to remain in the memory of mankind as a villain, Nobel bequeathed his fortune to the establishment of a scientific prize.
10. When the first tanks were sent to the front, British counterintelligence started a rumor that Russian government ordered a batch of tanks from England for drinking water. And the tanks set off railway under the guise of tanks (fortunately, gigantic size and the shape of the first tanks fully corresponded to this version). That is why tanks are called that (from the English tank - tank, tank). It’s interesting that we first translated this word and called it new combat vehicle"tub."
11. During the First World War, engineer Lebedenko designed and built an armored fighting vehicle with wheels with a diameter of 9 m, capable of carrying machine guns and cannons, and later called the Tsar Tank. Increased cross-country ability was proven in tests - the car broke birch trees like matches. However, the rear steerable roller, due to its small size and incorrect weight distribution of the vehicle as a whole, got stuck in soft ground almost immediately after the start of testing. Tests also revealed the vehicle’s significant vulnerability to artillery fire. Until 1917, the tank was guarded at the test site, but then the vehicle was forgotten, and in 1923 it was dismantled for scrap.
12. First Geneva Convention banned bayonet strikes to the stomach (which were used mainly by the Russian army). A blow to the chest was suggested as an alternative.
13. Mayan warriors used it as throwing weapons hornet nests (“hornet bombs”) to create panic in the enemy ranks.
14. The flag of Mozambique is the only one in the world that has an image of a Kalashnikov assault rifle. The machine gun is also placed on the coat of arms of Mozambique, as well as on the coats of arms of Zimbabwe and East Timor.
15. The largest artificial material object ever created by man can be considered the “mushroom” from the Soviet thermonuclear bomb AN602.
16. Famous phrase Khrushchev “I’ll show you Kuzka’s mother!” at the UN Assembly it was translated literally - “Kuzma’s mother”. The meaning of the phrase was completely incomprehensible and this made the threat take on a completely ominous character. Subsequently, the expression “Kuzka’s mother” was also used to refer to atomic bombs USSR.
17. South African law allows any degree of self-defense if we're talking about about a threat to human life or property. To protect cars from theft, traps, stun guns and even flamethrowers are popular here.
18. The expression “Whoever comes to us with a sword will die by the sword” does not belong to Alexander Nevsky. Its author is the screenwriter of the film of the same name, Pavlenko, who remade the phrase from the Gospel “Those who take the sword will die by the sword.”
19. During Soviet- Finnish war In 1939, Foreign Minister Molotov said that Soviet troops They are dropping not bombs, but food supplies for the starving Finns. In Finland, such bombs were dubbed “Molotov bread baskets”, and then they began to call them incendiary devices against Soviet tanks"Cocktail for Molotov." In our country, the name of such weapons has been shortened to simply “Molotov Cocktail”.
20. During World War I, cats were kept in trenches to give advance warning of gas attack. And during World War II, they were taken aboard submarines as living air quality detectors.
21. During the monetary reform of 1535 in Rus', the image of a horseman with a saber on coins was replaced by the image of a Grand Duke with a spear. Later, such coins were called kopecks.
After watching action movies, there is a strong belief that weapons can shoot almost endlessly, no matter where we go - everything explodes with beautiful fireworks, a silencer turns the sound of a shot into a light pop, etc. Such misconceptions can cost someone their life. But for those who never come across firearms, nothing terrible happens; all that remains is faith in a magic wand, a lightsaber and an endless miracle carbine. Although sometimes fantastic things happen in life with weapons interesting stories.
The Silencer Myth
Almost any blockbuster with spies or silent killers contains an episode in which someone shoots a gun with such a quiet and soft “poohhhh”.
Silencers They are attached to everything - from tiny pistols to huge shotguns, and the silencer looks like a sophisticated and expensive attachment. But according to the Hollywood version, it can be successfully replaced by a makeshift design in the form plastic bottle stuffed with socks.
What's really going on? In any case, gunpowder produces a loud sound when it explodes. A normal shot sounds with a force of 140-160 decibels. This Very loud, so loud that the sound can cause physical pain. Depending on the muffler, the volume can be reduced several times. But this sound still remains very loud. Conventional noise-canceling attachments reduce the volume to only 120-130 decibels, which is about the volume of a jackhammer, and the sound is less harsh.
In practice, the sound simply changes slightly, giving the illusion that a weapon of a smaller caliber was firing. It is this effect that is expected in most cases. In addition, such a shot is more difficult to detect, it is more difficult to determine where exactly it was fired. In addition, for effective noise reduction, complexes are being developed consisting of split cartridges, a special design of barrels and silencers.
The myth of the infinite charge in weapons
The fact that directors and screenwriters depict reality very conditionally is understandable. But this convention sometimes goes too far. When a six-shooter revolver fires on average 10-12 rounds in films, you begin to doubt your mathematical abilities. But when automatic weapons start firing...
The myth of automatic weapons
Automatic weapons have a closed magazine, and it is difficult to judge by eye real quantity charges there. But still, it seems a little strange that these charges are not exhausted throughout half the film, even with the most wasteful use.
In fact, the magazine of an M4 or AK-47 type assault rifle is exhausted in just a few seconds. Such weapons have a rate of fire of about 700 rounds per minute, and the magazine capacity is only 30!
And now something interesting- The average US infantryman carries about 210 rounds of ammunition. That is, he will be able to continuously rain automatic fire on the enemy for a maximum of a minute, even taking into account the time for changing magazines. But automatic mode It is not used often; in some types of weapons it is completely absent.
What then happens in battle? Where do the sounds of continuous fire come from in the documentary chronicle? The fact is that the main purpose of automatic small arms in suppressing the enemy. Slot machines are needed in order to force the enemy to lie down in cover and allow their own to maneuver. Therefore, most bullets fly into the “milk”; on average, there are about 200 rounds of ammunition per killed enemy...
The myth about the reliability of body armor
In films, thin, invisible Kevlar vests can save you from any misfortune. By at least, in most cases, according to the scriptwriters, machine gun bullets are stopped completely by such a vest.
But in fact there is a small subtlety. Those body armor that can be hidden under clothing in best case scenario will protect you from a gun. Which may be sufficient in urban environments. But from more powerful weapons Only special armor weighing 15 kg or more, which is much more rigid and bulky, can cover it. And at the same time, the shooter must be no closer than 14 meters...
The Myth of the Click of the Trigger
The sound of the hammer being cocked really does sound ominous. In theory, it symbolizes readiness for action, an undisguised threat. But the need for this action was only in revolvers. When between each shot it was necessary to perform this operation. And cocking the hammer in advance saved a couple of seconds before starting shooting.
For automatic weapons the spectacular click is just a fiction. The shutter is cocked automatically, and between shots gun is in a cocked state. If a similar trick is performed in the film, then this can only be achieved by removing the pistol from combat cocking, that is, practically disarming.
The situation is even worse with shotguns and assault rifles, in which the hammer is not required to be cocked in principle. Here they usually distort the shutter or pump. But the only thing that can be achieved with such an action is the ejection of the cartridge. After all, such an operation is intended only to remove the spent cartridge case...
The Myth of Explosiveness
AND the most The directors' favorite shots are everything around exploding from the first hit. It seems that all you have to do is point the gun in the direction of the car and it immediately turns into a torch. Any container with propane, oxygen and hydrogen also has this property.
But nothing like that actually happens. It is impossible to ignite a car by simply hitting it with bullets. Too many specific conditions must come together at the same time. Ideally, there should be a small hole in the gas tank from which gasoline leaks. At this time, its own vapors are concentrated inside the gas tank, and only after this the bullet has a chance of causing an explosion.
Well, now a few interesting facts about weapons and related issues. After all, reality is much more interesting and more unpredictable than any films, any stories.
Extreme Protection
In 1871 extreme lawyer Clement Vallandigham's appearance in court ended. His client was accused of killing a man during most a banal quarrel in a bar. The lawyer tried to prove that the murdered man himself was to blame - he tried to grab a pistol from his pocket from a very uncomfortable position and, as a result, shot himself through negligence. To prove his case, the lawyer tried to demonstrate this event on an unloaded pistol. But the gun went off during the process and the lawyer died. The defendant was acquitted.
Strange effect
After the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the Mujahideen received 2,000 portable weapons from the United States as a gift. anti-aircraft missile systems"Stinger". When the Soviet troops left the country, the American government began to buy these complexes from the locals at a price of 183,000, while the most interesting thing the standard price for Stingers was $38,000.
Laser weapons
Among science and technology news in 1984 it was developed by the USSR special pistol for astronauts. It was a laser device designed to disable enemy optical systems. The gun was not lethal and had no recoil, which is very important in conditions of weightlessness. Now this pistol is presented in the Museum of the History of the Strategic Missile Forces Military Academy as an exhibit.
Precious gift
A temple to the goddess Venus was built in ancient Roman Aquileia. The peculiarity of this temple was extreme hairstyle of the goddess - the statue was completely bald. This is how the city expressed gratitude to its women, who donated their hair for catapults and bows during the long siege. Thanks to this gift, it was possible to defend the city.
Weapons of mass destruction
The most terrible weapon used by the Mayan Indians. They threw “hornet bombs” - real nests of these stinging insects. Thus, the Mayans introduced an element of panic and confusion into the ranks of their enemies.
Necessary self-defense measure
According to South African law, self-defense can be achieved by any means. Here, traps, flamethrowers and stun guns are used to protect themselves and property.
A real soldier
The Polish Anders Army in Iraq during World War II picked up a bear cub. The soldiers took care of the baby, who was named Wojtek, and even treated him to beer. Interesting fact- the command enlisted the bear in the 22nd artillery supply company. As part of this unit, Wojtek reached Italy, where he helped in the battle of Monte Cassino, bringing shells to the guns and unloading ammunition!!! For its excellent service, the 22nd Company placed a bear on its new emblem.
Now, armed with myths and truths about weapons, you can look at brilliant inventions developers who came up with
Firearms appeared almost immediately after the invention of gunpowder. We can say that the appearance of gunpowder determined the further course human history, since it was thanks to firearms that the boundaries of the modern world have repeatedly changed. But let’s move politics aside and talk about interesting facts related to weapons.
The United States leads the world in the number of firearms per capita, with an average of 88 guns per 100 people. This is followed by Serbia (69.7), Yemen (54.8) and Switzerland (45.7). The United States ranks 28th in the world in homicide rates (3.2 deaths per 100,000 people per year). However, the majority of gun deaths in the United States are suicides.
2. Pistols instead of mills
Daisy Outdoor Products once sold windmills. At the same time, each buyer was given a small souvenir - an air pistol. Over time, pneumatics became so popular that the company abandoned trade windmills and started selling air pistols and guns.
3. Killer pistol for the museum
President Garfield's assassin chose a gun appearance, so that then this weapon “looks good in a museum.”
4. Weapons for astronauts
Russian cosmonauts They take weapons with them into space to protect themselves from bears if they land in the taiga region.
5. Criminals and victims
More than 90% of gun crimes are committed by men, and more than 75% of victims are also men.
6. The price of murder
Taking into account police dispatches, accident repairs, hospital fees, legal fees and consultations, the cost of one murder in the United States is $441,000. On average, 32 people are killed every day. It’s easy to calculate that in a year the United States alone loses more than $14 million on this.
7. Nunchakus are more dangerous than pistols
It is legal to carry a firearm in Arizona. However, it is forbidden to carry nunchucks with you.
8. Bullet action
While the actual chance of getting shot in a normal situation is minimal, let's talk about how people feel when they are hit by a bullet. In the first seconds, most do not feel anything at all due to shock, and then faint.
In Kennesaw, Georgia, every family is required by law to own a gun.
10. The largest shooting cannon
The Nazis built the most big gun in history. It weighed more than 1,300 tons and could shoot almost 40 km.
11. The most dangerous injuries
Gunshot wound in left side the heart tends to cause more bleeding than on the right side. When wounded in the liver, the opposite is true. A bullet wound without an exit hole is much more dangerous than a penetrating one, since the bullet can ricochet inside the body, damaging internal organs.
10. Gun on the keys
Jailers carry a miniature pistol on their key ring as a means of last hope"in self-defense.
Rifle bullet thanks to the most high speed flight has the greatest lethal force. However, slower pistol bullets tend to wobble during flight and can therefore cause big defeats when hitting a person.
The Kalashnikov assault rifle has become the absolute leader in use in the world. Nuclear collapse was very close. At all nuclear missiles ah USA there was one simple code. The Molotov cocktail is named after the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Well, now we’ll find out what each of these facts hides.
Record-breaking machine
The famous Kalashnikov assault rifle (AK-47), which was created in 1947, is the most mass weapons on the planet, this fact was even recorded by the Guinness Book of Records. It is worth noting that it was the first modification of the machine gun that was popular; subsequent introductions and modifications of the weapon were no longer as popular as the “pioneer”.
In total, about 100 million Kalashnikov assault rifles were produced. It turns out that for every 7th inhabitant of the planet there is 1 AK-47 assault rifle.
Nuclear shells
How do you imagine nuclear weapons? Surely a picture pops up in your head with a flying plane dropping a huge bomb. Nevertheless, until a certain time, the armies were armed with nuclear weapons. artillery shells, which were launched from special artillery installations. On at the moment, during disarmament after the end, this type weapons were eliminated.
Peaceful nuclear explosion
Although nuclear weapons were developed for military purposes, they have found greater use for peaceful purposes. For example, nuclear explosions used to create deep storage facilities and extract minerals. However, despite the benefits to society of such explosions, they had detrimental consequences for the environment. In addition to the violation of the conditions created by nature, the land was contaminated with radiation. More than a hundred such “peaceful explosions” were carried out in the USSR, and 27 in the USA.
One step away from nuclear war
There have been 2 cases in history when the world came as close as possible to nuclear war. The first case occurred in the USA, it was 1979. In one of the Pentagon computers, a training program was mistakenly launched, which launched an emulation of committing nuclear strike throughout the USA. Since the satellites were not associated with this program, they did not detect the launch of nuclear missiles, which actually saved the world from a nuclear disaster.
The second incident occurred in the USSR 4 years after the curious incident in the USA. The satellite tracking system malfunctioned and mistakenly transmitted to the control panel a message about a nuclear strike by America. The dispatcher, having analyzed the nature of the “strikes,” decided not to inform the leadership about this, since, based on the analysis, the United States would not have struck first with such a small force.
Nagasaki was just unlucky
The infamous cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki became the target of a nuclear strike by the Americans. But in fact, the city of Nagasaki was a fallback option. The first target of the strike was the city of Hiroshima, the second according to plan was Kokura, but due to very poor visibility the pilot decided to strike backup plan and the bomb was dropped on Nagasaki.
"Reliable" code
In the era of the beginning of the production of nuclear missiles, the command introduced a mechanism additional protection from accidental launch. To do this, a special code had to be entered before launching the rocket.
It would seem that everything is correct: in this way, hundreds of lives can be saved from the erroneous launch of a terrible rocket, but everything turned out to be quite prosaic. Total quantity missiles with 1,000 warheads had one launch code: “00000000” - 8 zeros. A very simple code was invented in order to enter it as quickly as possible and immediately open fire.
This " secret code"Every officer knew, that is large number soldier. But realizing such a mistake 17 years later, it was corrected, and each missile henceforth had its own personal code installed.
"Molotov cocktail"
Enough interesting story The famous “Molotov cocktail” has its name. There is an opinion that Molotov is the creator of the recipe for this cocktail, but this is a big misconception.
Molotov - Minister of Foreign Affairs of the USSR. During the Finnish War Russian soldiers Bottled incendiary mixtures and aerial bombs were actively used. In one of his interviews, Molotov said that the army does not use any aerial bombs, but, on the contrary, delivers food to the people of Finland who are starving. After this, aerial bombs in Finland began to be called “Molotov baskets”, and Molotov cocktails – “Molotov breads”. In view of the situation that took place at that time active propaganda, the name “Molotov bread” was changed to “Molotov cocktail”.
How they do it:
The most interesting things about firearms.
There is a lot of controversy surrounding guns today. Thousands of people die every year as a result gunshot wounds, so it's no surprise that many are anti-gun. However, today we will not talk about whether this is good or bad, but about interesting facts related to various models of firearms.
1. History of firearms
This is how it all began.
Many people know that weapons have changed a lot over the centuries, but few people think about how long they have been around. Some of the earliest records of the use of firearms date back to the 13th and 14th centuries. By the 1400s, matchlock guns appeared. This was an important development because before this the weapon was very difficult to use. Before the appearance of the gun with matchlock it was necessary to manually bring the burning wick to the shelf with gunpowder. The matchlock made it possible to hold the gun with both hands while shooting, which had a very positive effect on aiming.
2. Gun owners benefit the environment.
It's hard to believe, but it's true.
Typically, pistol owners are never associated with the environment. In fact, they contribute greatly to the protection environment when buying weapons and ammunition. For example, since 1937, gun owners in the United States have contributed more than $4 billion to gun conservation. wildlife. This money went to save wildlife, preserve forests, nature reserves and parks. What's the catch? It's simple - in the United States, a tax of 10-11 percent is set on the sale of all weapons and ammunition, which goes towards the conservation of wildlife.
3. Russians and trunks
Who would have thought.
Today it is no longer a secret to anyone that the Russians actually took pistols with them into space. These pistols, called TP-82, were produced between 1986 and 2007 and were designed to protect astronauts from bears (in case the lander fell somewhere in the taiga). Also Soviet Union developed a Gatling-like autocannon - GSh-6-30, intended for installation on aircraft. Unfortunately, the vibration of the gun could cause damage to the aircraft. Three prototypes made an unsuccessful landing due to jamming of the landing gear caused by vibration of the Gsh-6-30.
4. Revolver with camera
There is such a thing.
There have been many changes made to shotguns and pistols over the years. In 1938, a very interesting innovation appeared in the form of a revolver combined with a camera (Colt .38 special with a camera attached to it). Whenever the owner pulled trigger revolver, the camera took a picture. As one can imagine, this had somewhat creepy potential. The good news is that even if the revolver was not loaded, the camera could still take pictures (no different, however, from a regular camera). But this is a really crazy invention.
5. Picasso
Even this happened.
Pablo Picasso is one of the most famous and outrageous artists of the twentieth century. What is less known is what he did in his spare time. Picasso had a revolver which he used to load blank cartridges. If someone asked Picasso about what was depicted in his paintings, started talking about his theories on aesthetics, or insulted the memory of Paul Cézanne, then the artist would “shoot” this person. Today it is already known that the gun was loaded with blanks, but at that time it was clearly not funny to people.
6. Strange laws
It's not always easy with the law.
Everyone knows that there are many strange laws all over the world. Gun laws are no exception. The first strange law we'll look at today was passed in Arizona. It is legal to carry a handgun in this state, but it is illegal to own nunchucks. Another strange gun law was passed in Kennesaw, Georgia. It states that every head of family in the city must have a pistol. However, there are a number of exceptions to this rule, such as the prohibition of using weapons for religious reasons.
7. The biggest gun
Made in Germany.
Firearms come in all shapes and sizes. There are pistols small enough to fit in your pocket, and there are guns so large they are mounted on battleships. There is also a weapon that bears the title of “the most large caliber rifled weapons, used in battle in the history of artillery." It was Schwerer Gustav (“Heavy Gustav”) - a railway artillery piece, built by the Nazis during World War II. It weighed 1350 tons and moved on a railway platform. An 807-mm projectile weighing 4.8 (high-explosive) or 7 tons (concrete-piercing) could hit a target at a distance of 39 kilometers.
8. Key guns
Unexpected surprise.
In the 1850s, jailers in the United States were given a special type of firearm, similar to a key. These pistol keys were actually used to lock cells in prisons, just like regular keys. But they had a secret - inside the “key” there was a barrel with 1 cartridge “for extreme case" These weapons were eventually discontinued as the guards had much more useful and practical weapons.
9. Presidents and pistols
They always found each other.
James Garfield, 20th President of the United States, was killed by a pistol shot. But his killer did something very strange when choosing a firearm to kill the president: he bought a gun that he thought would look good in a museum. The weapon actually ended up in the museum. The next story about the president and guns has a not so sad ending. American President Andrew Jackson was almost killed by a man who managed to get close to him with two pistols. However, luck seemed to be on Jackson's side that day. When his would-be killer, Richard Lawrence, pulled the trigger, the gun misfired. He didn't have time to pull the second one out of his pocket.
10. Zombie Killer Weapon
A real symbol.
Finally, let's look at some funny weapons created in 2012. Gun Company Mossberg has released a line of firearms designed specifically for killing zombies. Of course, everyone thinks that zombies are fiction, but you never know what will happen in the future. To be fair, there is almost no difference between this weapon and other firearms other than the special "ZMB" stamp. But why change something that already works well.
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